With the recent switch in the political party controlling the Virginia House of Delegates and governor’s mansion, our environment is under attack! Clean air, water, and land should be a high priority for everyone, regardless of political affiliation, because it directly affects us all. But unfortunately, many politicians have (just in recent decades) aligned themselves in direct opposition to anything even remotely associated with maintaining a healthy environment, presumably in the name of profitability for both small and big businesses. We believe that it is possible to promote a strong, healthy economy, while also promoting a healthy earth.
The Sierra Club York River Group met (virtually) on February 16, 2022 to hear from Connor Kish, Sierra Club Virginia Chapter's Legislative and Political Director, and Bob Shippee, who volunteers full-time as an environmental advocate during General Assembly sessions. They gave the attendees at the meeting a mid-session report.
Like elsewhere in the country, the Virginia General Assembly has become very partisan. This year, almost anything having to do with promoting environmental health and equity is either under attack (if it already is on the books), or else dies very quickly (if it is a new proposal). Environmental Justice (EJ) bills are going nowhere. Citizen boards (currently part of the permitting process) are under attack and may be rescinded. Trees/canopy bills are DOA. Money for coastal adaptation (because of increased coastal flooding) is under risk.
Essentially, our representatives who support a clean environment are very much on the defense this year. It is hoped that gains made on the environmental front in recent years (such as the Virginia Clean Economy Act and Virginia’s membership in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Emissions Initiative) can be protected, while also preventing too many new environmentally-harmful bills from being passed.
Two useful websites to help you track what is happening with bills in the Virginia General Assembly are:
http://www.vcnva.org/bill-tracker
On the second site, you can click on "Bills & Resolutions: Status of individual bills and related information", to look up specific bills. There are many other helpful links on this website as well, including calendars and information about leglislation sponsors.